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Fan abuse has history with Steelers
By Joe Bendel
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, October 21, 2005
Alan Faneca and his family faced the wrath of a Steelers loss a couple years back.
"They left something at our door," the Pro Bowl guard said.
That something was a bag of excrement, likely deposited by disgruntled fans. Faneca's wife, Julie, immediately called the police and filed a report.
"It's not hard to find out where we live," Faneca said Thursday. "And if you really wanted to do something, good or bad, you could. In our profession, people know our business."
Faneca recounted fan behavior on the heels of quarterback Tommy Maddox's yard being vandalized in the wake of Sunday's 23-17 overtime loss to Jacksonville at Heinz Field.
Maddox's grade-school children have since been teased while riding the bus, his agent, Vann McElroy, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Wednesday.
Maddox committed four turnovers, including a fumble and an interception that was returned for a touchdown in overtime. He was booed vociferously, but the abuse did not end there.
"I went up to Tommy and said, 'Is all this true?'" kicker Jeff Reed said, referring to the incidents at his home. "Tommy said, 'Yeah, it's pretty bad.' "
Maddox did not want to get into specifics about the incidents Wednesday or yesterday.
"I'm not going to talk about all that," he said. "I've been here for five years and I've had a lot of support in those five years. Fans are fans, and some people are going to react the way they're going to react. That's the way the game goes. I've been around this game for a long time. I've had unbelievable support while I've been here, and that's all I'm going to say about it."
Maddox has not filed a police report.
"I had some lady call and say she had mums stolen from her front yard, and that she heard Maddox had been harassed," Adams Township Police Chief Bill Westerman said. "That was the first I'd heard of it."
Maddox plays a position that sends players from the proverbial penthouse to the outhouse at warp speed. He reached a high in 2002, when he led the Steelers to the playoffs and was named the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year. And a low last Sunday, when he filled in for the injured Ben Roethlisberger.
Maddox, though, is not the first Steelers quarterback to endure the wrath of fan reaction. Fans cheered when Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw sustained an injury at Three Rivers Stadium in 1974. And Kordell Stewart had beer dumped on his head at Three Rivers, not to mention having his mailboxes knocked from the front of his residence on a regular basis.
"I want all that to kinda die and go away and get back to playing football," said Maddox, who received an outpouring of support after being temporarily paralyzed in '02.
Steelers coach Bill Cowher not only can empathize with Maddox, he can relate. Cowher said he's endured fan abuse first-hand during his 14-year tenure with the Steelers.
"I've gone through the period of time here in Pittsburgh, as well, in '98 and '99, when we lost," Cowher said. "It's unfortunate and it's the ugly part of this game being in the public eye."
Cowher supported Maddox, who is nursing a right shoulder injury and has been dropped to No. 3 on the depth chart.
"No one feels worse about losing a game like that than the players and coaches in that locker room," Cowher said. "They throw everything into it. No one probably felt worse than Tommy. This is a quality individual. We all understand the criticisms that come with this game.
"We understand that. When you start taking it outside of the field, to the house, to the kids, to me you have crossed the line. It's a classless thing to do. We recognize that we are judged and people have the right to say what they want about us, myself as a coach, Tommy as a quarterback and any player. Just understand we are all doing the very best that we can."
Wide receiver Hines Ward was appalled by the backlash against Maddox.
"It's childish, it's stupid," he said. "What we do on the field, it stays on the field. And that should go for the fans. You can talk bad about us and say what you want to say, but don't bring our families into it, because our families didn't do anything to anybody. To bring his kids into it and to vandalize his house, that's uncalled for. That's childish."
Right guard Kendall Simmons, a father and husband, said enough is enough.
"I think they need to get off his back," Simmons said. "I don't like that kind of stuff. You don't want somebody coming to your job and going to your family, your kids, and saying your dad doesn't deserve his job because he's (bad) at the factory or whatever you want to call it. It ain't called for. They just need to leave the man alone and let him do his job. Enjoy the game, go back to business. If you don't like it, hey, that's fine. But don't harass anybody because it ain't called for."
Joe Bendel can be reached at joecbendel@aol.com or (412) 320-7811.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/sports/steelerslive/s_386307.html
By Joe Bendel
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, October 21, 2005
Alan Faneca and his family faced the wrath of a Steelers loss a couple years back.
"They left something at our door," the Pro Bowl guard said.
That something was a bag of excrement, likely deposited by disgruntled fans. Faneca's wife, Julie, immediately called the police and filed a report.
"It's not hard to find out where we live," Faneca said Thursday. "And if you really wanted to do something, good or bad, you could. In our profession, people know our business."
Faneca recounted fan behavior on the heels of quarterback Tommy Maddox's yard being vandalized in the wake of Sunday's 23-17 overtime loss to Jacksonville at Heinz Field.
Maddox's grade-school children have since been teased while riding the bus, his agent, Vann McElroy, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Wednesday.
Maddox committed four turnovers, including a fumble and an interception that was returned for a touchdown in overtime. He was booed vociferously, but the abuse did not end there.
"I went up to Tommy and said, 'Is all this true?'" kicker Jeff Reed said, referring to the incidents at his home. "Tommy said, 'Yeah, it's pretty bad.' "
Maddox did not want to get into specifics about the incidents Wednesday or yesterday.
"I'm not going to talk about all that," he said. "I've been here for five years and I've had a lot of support in those five years. Fans are fans, and some people are going to react the way they're going to react. That's the way the game goes. I've been around this game for a long time. I've had unbelievable support while I've been here, and that's all I'm going to say about it."
Maddox has not filed a police report.
"I had some lady call and say she had mums stolen from her front yard, and that she heard Maddox had been harassed," Adams Township Police Chief Bill Westerman said. "That was the first I'd heard of it."
Maddox plays a position that sends players from the proverbial penthouse to the outhouse at warp speed. He reached a high in 2002, when he led the Steelers to the playoffs and was named the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year. And a low last Sunday, when he filled in for the injured Ben Roethlisberger.
Maddox, though, is not the first Steelers quarterback to endure the wrath of fan reaction. Fans cheered when Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw sustained an injury at Three Rivers Stadium in 1974. And Kordell Stewart had beer dumped on his head at Three Rivers, not to mention having his mailboxes knocked from the front of his residence on a regular basis.
"I want all that to kinda die and go away and get back to playing football," said Maddox, who received an outpouring of support after being temporarily paralyzed in '02.
Steelers coach Bill Cowher not only can empathize with Maddox, he can relate. Cowher said he's endured fan abuse first-hand during his 14-year tenure with the Steelers.
"I've gone through the period of time here in Pittsburgh, as well, in '98 and '99, when we lost," Cowher said. "It's unfortunate and it's the ugly part of this game being in the public eye."
Cowher supported Maddox, who is nursing a right shoulder injury and has been dropped to No. 3 on the depth chart.
"No one feels worse about losing a game like that than the players and coaches in that locker room," Cowher said. "They throw everything into it. No one probably felt worse than Tommy. This is a quality individual. We all understand the criticisms that come with this game.
"We understand that. When you start taking it outside of the field, to the house, to the kids, to me you have crossed the line. It's a classless thing to do. We recognize that we are judged and people have the right to say what they want about us, myself as a coach, Tommy as a quarterback and any player. Just understand we are all doing the very best that we can."
Wide receiver Hines Ward was appalled by the backlash against Maddox.
"It's childish, it's stupid," he said. "What we do on the field, it stays on the field. And that should go for the fans. You can talk bad about us and say what you want to say, but don't bring our families into it, because our families didn't do anything to anybody. To bring his kids into it and to vandalize his house, that's uncalled for. That's childish."
Right guard Kendall Simmons, a father and husband, said enough is enough.
"I think they need to get off his back," Simmons said. "I don't like that kind of stuff. You don't want somebody coming to your job and going to your family, your kids, and saying your dad doesn't deserve his job because he's (bad) at the factory or whatever you want to call it. It ain't called for. They just need to leave the man alone and let him do his job. Enjoy the game, go back to business. If you don't like it, hey, that's fine. But don't harass anybody because it ain't called for."
Joe Bendel can be reached at joecbendel@aol.com or (412) 320-7811.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/sports/steelerslive/s_386307.html
